Terror of Swords
by imran102
Summary: Ryou Misaki, the player of Haseo of [The World], was just bored. He decided to play Sword Art Online, a new VRMMORPG. Just when he thought he was done with crazy things happening in games, now he's stuck in a game where dying means dying. As the player Skeith, can he win this game and see his friends again? Pairings undecided. Haseo REPLACES Kirito, so beware, Kirito fans.
1. Chapter 1

**.hack/Sword**

**Summary: Ryou Misaki, the player of Haseo of [The World], was just bored. He decided to play Sword Art Online, a new VRMMORPG. Just when he thought he was done with crazy things happening in games, now he's stuck in a game where dying means dying. As the player Skeith, can he win this game and see his friends again? Pairings undecided. Haseo REPLACES Kirito, so beware, Kirito fans.**

**Chapter 1: Death Game**

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_1__st__ August, Somewhere in Japan, Ryou Misaki/Haseo_

I yawned. I was really beginning to get bored. I had nothing to do. I was already one of the best players in [The World], so there's nothing for me to do there except meeting friends. None of them are online at the moment, though. Who knew the life of a 'hero'(that's what my friends call me, anyways. I disagree. What hero has 'The Terror of Death' as a nickname?) can be so dull?

Ah, forgot to introduce myself. I am Ryou Misaki. But you might know me better as Haseo, The Terror of Death. I am a player of the game [The World]. 12 months ago, I started as a newbie. And….I got PKed not 10 minutes later. Sad, right? Anyways, another player Ovan, came along and saved me. I found out he was the Guildmaster of a Guild known as [The Twilight Brigade]. They were searching for a legendary item known as [The Key of The Twilight]. I joined the guild after being invited. But then…..then Ovan disappeared. And then Shino, a member of the Brigade that I liked, got PKed. For some odd reason, she fell into a coma afterwards. And I….I went berserk. I became basically a vengeance-hungry monster. I started targeting PKers for information about the person who PKed Shino, Tri-Edge. There was one time I even PKKed 100 PKers in one night. That was the night I earned my nickname, [The Terror of Death]. And then finally….Ovan reappeared and told me information regarding Tri-Edge. I immediately seeked him out….and was defeated. And to make things worse, I de-leveled from level 133 to level 1.

And then…..you know what, this a waste of time. Just play the .hack/G.U. games if you want to know more about me. Hey, at least I told you the storyline of .hack/Roots. Know you won't have to watch 20+ episodes of an anime with bad animation.

The ringing sound of the doorbell cut off my thoughts. I immediately opened the door, and outside there was a package on the floor. Curious, I picked it up and read a note that was next to it.

_Congratulations, Ryou Misaki!_

_You are one of the 1,000 lucky people that have been chosen to play in the beta test of [Sword Art Online], the world's first VRMMORPG! _

Ah.

I remember signing up for the [Sword Art Online] – also called [SAO] - beta test last week. I was just looking for another game to play besides [The World R:2]. It seems I was accepted. Lucky me.

I ripped open the package, revealing a box titled [Sword Art Online].

Well, looks like I finally have something to do for a while.

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_6__th__ November, Ryou Misaki's home_

Today was finally the day.

The day of [Sword Art Online]'s official release. 2 months ago, I played the [Closed Beta Test] of [Sword Art Online], and needless to say, I got hooked. It was just so…..different….compared to [The World R:2]. Sure, [The World R:2] had pretty good graphics, but they were nothing compared to [SAO]. And I still needed to use a damned controller when playing [The World R:2], and for [SAO]…..it's amazing. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was real.

CC Corps, the company that owns [The World R:2], are going to have to do a LOT to catch up with Argus, the company that owns [Sword Art Online]. Maybe they'll make [The World R:3], this time with the full-dive system. Hey, I can dream, right?

I looked at the clock on the wall. 1 minute. One minute from now, the online service would be officially active.

I took out the NerveGear, the first console made for the full-dive system, out of the box and plugged it in.

I lay down on the bed, and took the helmet that was part of the NerveGear, and wore it. I took a glance at the clock, and at the very second it hit 1 o' clock….

"[Link Start!]"

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_First Floor, Town of Beginnings, Haseo/Skeith's POV_

"Hey, teach me a few things!" the man in front of me begged. He had brown hair and samurai armor, and wore a bandanna on his forehead. I wondered how he could be so shameless and be so demanding to a person he never met before.

I sighed. I really didn't have time for this. But this guy's begging me for it…. "Eh, sure, why not. Let's go to the weapons shop first. What's your name." I told him.

"I'm Klein! And sure, I'll go to the weapon's shop with you! What's your name?" Klein asked.

"I'm Skeith. Come on, follow me." I said. Yes, I named myself Skeith. No way in hell would I name myself Haseo, since that would no doubt attract unwanted attention.

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_First Floor, outside the Town of Beginnings, Skeith's POV_

"Aaah….Uaa…..Waah….." Klein said, while swishing his sword around with those strange shouts. Right afterwards, the blue boar Klein was trying to hit charged at him. I facepalmed, watching him fly through the air.

"Klein….you idiot, it's not like that. The first movement is important, Klein." I advised.

"Argh….that bastard…" Klein said while he got up. "But Skeith….even if you say that, I can't do anything about the fact that it's moving." Klein complained.

I sighed. I took a pebble on the ground and raised it above my shoulder. The system detected the first movement of a [Sword Skill] and the pebble started glowing greenish light. After that, my hand almost moved by itself and the pebble went flying, and hit the boar between its forehead. The boar squealed in fury and turned to me.

"Of course it moves, captain obvious. It's not damned training dummy. You just have to do the right motion, and the system would do the rest for you." I explained.

"Motion…motion…" Klein muttered, as if it was some sort of incantation. While doing so, he raised his cutlass he held in his right hand.

"It's hard to explain. It's not 1, 2, 3, and strike. Then as soon you as you feel the [Sword Skill] start, it….explodes, I guess, and hits the monster." I explained.

"Explode, huh?" Klein muttered. Klein leveled his sword at his waist. After taking a big breath, he lowered his stance and raised his sword as if he was going to shoulder it. This time, the sword shone brightly. With a low yell, he jumped off the ground with movement different from before. The [Reaver], a basic skill of the one-handed curved sword, struck the boar and killed it. The boar gave a pitiful cry before shattering like glass.

"YEAH!" Klein exclaimed while doing a victory pose with a huge smile on his face.

"Congrats….but that boar is about as strong as slimes in just about every game." I told him.

"EH? I thought it was some sort of mini-boss or something…." Klein muttered in disappointment.

"No way in hell." I told him.

I sheathed my dagger (one thing I don't like about this game, it's that I can't use two daggers at once.), and looked at the scenery while Klein practiced [Reaver] over and over again.

After a while, Klein sheathed his weapon and walked over me, watching the scenery as well. "Wow….No matter how many times I see it, I can't believe we're inside a game." Klein muttered.

"Well, we're not exactly inside the game, it's just our brain is seeing and hearing instead of our eyes and ears, with the signals the [NerveGear] sends." I explained.

"You might be used to it, but this is my first time using [NerveGear!]. I'm glad I was born in this era!" Klein said.

"You're exaggerating." I said, but I completely agreed with him. "So [SAO] is the first full-dive game you played?" I asked in curiosity.

"Yeah. I had to wait in a huge line to get it! There were only 10,000 that were made, after all. I'm so lucky I got it! But you're 10 times luckier, getting into the beta test!" he said.

"I guess so." I said simply. "So, do you want to keep hunting till you get used to it?" I asked him.

"Sure! ….is what I want to say, but…well, I should log off and eat. I ordered pizza to eat at 5.30 p.m." He said.

"Pretty thorough." I said.

"Of course! I promised some friends to meet them in [The Town of Beginnings] in a bit. Want to meet them?" Klein asked.

"Nah. I'm not the friendliest of people. They would probably dislike me.

"Well, too bad. Well, I need to log out now. Thanks a lot, Skeith. See you later." He said.

I shook his hand. "Yeah, see you around." I said.

Klein took a step back, and opened the main menu with his fingers. I sat down on a rock, and opened the main menu too, organizing the items I got.

"Eh?" Klein asked with a confused tone. "There's no log out button!" he said.

I raised my head in confusion. "Huh? Look closer, it should be….." I said, before realizing it wasn't there. "…there…." I finished. "You're…..right. There's no log out button." I said in confusion.

Klein smiled and started rubbing his chin. "Well, it's the first day, so bugs could happen. The GMs are probably crying from all the complaints their getting right now." He said.

"I guess you're right…." I said, with a hint of doubt. I felt something….something terrible was going to happen. Something that would change my life forever.

"Ah, damn!" Klein panicked. "It's 5.25 already! My pizza! Hey Skeith, isn't there any other way to log out?" Klein asked.

I shook my head. "No. The Log Out button's the only way." I said.

"That's impossible…there's got to be a way!" he said, denying my statement. "Log Out! Return! Escape!" he shouted. But it's no use. SAO didn't have any voice commands, at least that I know of.

"Klein, it's useless. Not even the manual has anything on emergency log outs." I said to him.

"But….but this is stupid! Even if it's a bug, I can't even go back to my room and my body when I want to!" he shouted. After a few seconds, an idea formed in his head. "Wait, we can just pull the power off. Or take off the [NerveGear]." He said. He moved his hands as if trying to take off an invisible hat.

"Both are impossible. We can't move our real bodies. The [NerveGear] intercepts all the brain signals and reroutes them here." I said to him.

"….so unless someone fixes the bug or somebody takes the gear off, we're stuck here?" Klein asked. I silently nodded. "But…I live by myself. You?" he asked.

"Same here." I said. After a few seconds, I asked "Don't you think it's weird?"

"Well of course. Since it's a bug." Klein said.

"Yes, I know that. But this is a 'can't log out' bug, and that's a big enough problem to bother the game itself. It's a huge economical loss. The server operators should have already shut down the server and logged everyone out yet. They're not idiots." I said.

"Yeah…..you're right." Klein said.

"What could it be…" I asked myself.

I started wondering what was going on. The best possible explanation that I could think of is that an [AIDA] has infected the server. I was reminded about something that was similar like this happening a few months ago. Nobody could log out, just like right now.

Could it be an [AIDA]?

"…the company that owns [SAO], Argus, is well-known for being considerate to its users, right? It's sorta meaningless if they screw up on the first day." Klein said.

"Agreed. And remember, [SAO] is the first VRMMORPG, if something goes wrong, then the whole genre might get screwed." I said.

_Ding, ding…._ a noise like a bell sounded loudly, making Klein and I jump in surprise. A second later, we were immersed in blue light. I knew what this was….it was a [Teleport]. Did the operators initiate a forced teleport? If so, why didn't they warned us?

The blue light faded. I was no longer in the fields. I was now in the central plaza of [The Town of Beginnings]. I looked around me. Klein was right beside me, and surrounding us were thousands and thousands of players. A few mumbles and mutters were heard, and they got louder and louder.

"Ah….look up!" One of the players said, pointing upwards. The sky was red. There was a pattern of 2 phrases – [Warning] and [System Announcement], written in red.

I was surprised for a moment, then thought the GM would make an announcement and relaxed a bit.

Suddenly, a liquid red like blood started oozing down and started congealing into a shape. It became a 20-metre tall figure wearing a hooded robe. And…it had no face. The robe was empty.

"Players, I welcome you to my world." The figure said. "I am Kayaba Akihiko. Right now, I am the only one who can control this world." He said.

I widened my eyes. Kayaba Akihiko. I knew that name. Everyone knew who he was. A genius on quantum physics, he was the person who directed the SAO project and the developer of the NerveGear.

"I think most of you have already discovered that the Log Out button has disappeared. This is not a bug. It is part of the system." He said. "Until you clear this game, you cannot log out." He continued. "Also, if the NerveGear is to be dismantled or removed, then…..your NerveGear would emit a strong electromagnetic pulse, destroying your brain." He said. Everyone started muttering, but there was no panicking. Everyone was either not believing it, or refusing to. "Do not worry, I have already noted the mass-media and the outside world. However, some relatives and friends have ignored this warning. The result…213 players have left this world, and the real world as well." He said. A long, thin scream was heard. But most players couldn't, or refused, to believe it.

I widened my eyes. 213 people. 213, innocent, people, have died. I felt emotions growing inside me. Rage. Hatred. Anger. This man….how dare he….how dare he….

"**HOW DARE YOU!" **I shouted, breaking the silence. People turned their hands. "How dare you! You…you bastard! YOU'RE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEATHS OF 213 PEOPLE! HOW DARE YOU SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT SO CASUALLY! KAYABA AKIHIKO**! I WILL KILL YOU!"** I shouted.

"Skeith…" Klein said in worry.

The hooded figure chuckled. "Hahaha…. Kill me, eh? I hope you can back that up, player. I will await for you in the 100th floor. And as for the rest of you….do not worry. I have given the outside world 2 hours to transport you to hospitals. Just focus on beating [Sword Art Online]. If you do that, you will all be logged out. And from this point on, [Sword Art Online] is no longer an ordinary game. [Death] in this game is now final. The moment your HP reached 0, the NerveGear would destroy your brain." He said.

"You're lying!"

"Stop this….stop this sick joke!"

"This…this is a joke…right?"

There were mutters like this heard everywhere. No one seemed to believe it…but me. Perhaps it is because I have dealt with something similar, but I believed everything he just said and I wasn't afraid either. I continued glaring at him.

"Then, I will show you evidence this is the truth. In your inventories, there will be a gift from me." He said. The second he said that, me and thousands of other players opened their inventories. Inside, there was an item – named [Hand Mirror]. I tapped the name and pressed the [Make into Object] button, and a rectangular mirror appeared on my hand.

Suddenly, everyone was covered in white light, including me. 2 or 3 seconds later, the light died out, and in front of me, the person who was supposed to be Klein, looked almost completely different. The armor, the bandanna, the sword, they were all the same. But the face….was completely different.

"Who….who are you?" we both asked each other at the same time.

Widening my eyes, I raised the hand mirror in my hand. I saw my reflection. I still had red eyes. However, my white hair has been replaced with light brown hair. I no longer looked like Haseo, instead I looked like….Ryou Misaki, the player of Haseo and Skeith. "It's….me…." I muttered. Klein, who was also looking at his mirror, fell backwards.

"You're Klein!?"

"You're Skeith!?"

We stared at each other in shock.

Around me, the players no longer looked like fantasy warriors. They looked like a bunch of normal people wearing fantasy costumes.

"Now, I have finished the official tutorial of [Sword Art Online]. Players….I wish you luck." Kayaba finished. The hooded figure disappeared. Silence filled the crowd. I knew it wasn't going to last long.

Three, two, one….

"It's a joke right? This….this is just a joke!"

"Stop kidding around! Let me out!

"I don't like this! I want to go home!"

It has started. I cursed. I knew it'll get worse. I grabbed Klein's hand, and dragged him out of the crowd. "Klein…listen to me. We need to get to the next town. If what that bastard said was true, then we need to get stronger. The people who have realized this are going to hunt all the monsters here. I know the way and the most dangerous spots, so we can get there easily." I said.

"But…my friends. They probably have logged in too. I can't leave them." Klein said.

I sighed. This was problematic. I couldn't protect all of them. However…..the more players we have, the higher the chance of surviving we have. "Then let them come with us." I said, surprising him.

"But...experience points aren't shared. We would be slowing you down." Klein argued.

"True. But, if we want to survive this game…..then we need all the help we can get. Teamwork is the strongest weapon – wow that sounded cheesy – so we would need all the teamwork we can get." I told him.

Klein smiled. "Thanks, Skeith. You….are a really great person." He said.

"Great person? I'm far from that, Klein. Now, go get your friends." I told him. He nodded and gone to search for his friends.

As Klein's figure disappeared from the distance, I scowled.

[Sword Art Online] has ceased to be a fun game….it is now a death game.

Kayaba Akihiko….in the name of the 213 players who have died this day, I will kill you….with my own hands.

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**End of Chapter 1**

**Hmm, I wanted to add in episode 2 in this chapter too, but I got lazy, so this would have to do.**

**Some of you may complain that it's barely different from the first episode of SAO, but well, you will start noticing the differences next chapter.**

**As you can see, Haseo/Skeith isn't a selfish person like Kirito, so he would fight in parties much more willingly than Kirito. But, he is a VERY cold person, even if it is post-character development.**

**Also, Haseo/Skeith would get TWO unique skills, the first is of course dual wield, and the other…..that's a secret.**

**Please tell me what you want as the main pairing! I'll accept anything…..except Yaoi. Should it be a harem? Or should he be with Asuna? Lisbeth? Silica? Argo? Lyfa? WHO?**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Thanks for all the follows, favorites, and reviews, everyone! And I'm still not sure on the pairing. Some want a harem, some want single pairings, some don't want any pairings whatsoever. For now, I'll do a small harem of about 3 girls – Alkaid, Atoli, and Asuna. The rest would have a crush on him, but he wouldn't notice nor would it be mutual.**

**The Terror of Swords**

**Chapter 2: The Meeting**

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_2nd December, The World R:2, Net Slum Tartaga, Alkaid_

The room was deathly quiet.

Despite so many people are here, the [Net Slum] was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

There were many people here. Yata, Kuhn, Pi, Ovan (although Yata doesn't seem too happy about it), Shino, Zelkova, Tabby, Silabus, Matsu, and a whole lot of other people. Basically all of Haseo's friends.

I couldn't stand this silence anymore.

"ONE MONTH!" I exclaimed. Everyone turned to me. "IT'S BEEN ONE MONTH ALREADY! HASEO HAS BEEN STUCK IN THAT DAMNED GAME FOR ONE MONTH ALREADY! AND WE'RE DOING ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!" I exclaimed. Tears were threatening to fall.

Haseo…..that idiot. That stupid idiot.

Why? Why of all people in this world, both real and game world, why did I have to fall in love with that him?

And of all people, why did the person I loved have to be one of the 10,000 players to get stuck in [Sword Art Online]?

"Shut up Alkaid! Do you think you're the only one who wants to scream? The only one who wants to cry?" Pi exclaimed.

"Shut up! You….you don't understand how I feel…you don't understand anything…." I said. Tears have begun to flow.

"WHAT? I don't understand? Shut your mouth, you-"

"Stop it." Kuhn said. However, his face was no longer covered in his usual smile. "Arguing won't help bring Haseo back." He said.

Pi and I became quiet after Kuhn said that.

"Even after one month….I still have not found a way to hack into [Sword Art Online] and bring Haseo back….I'm….I'm so sorry….." Zelkova said. Kaede tried to comfort him.

"There are also other things happening right now." Yata stated, making everyone's attention turn to him. "I have found that most of the hostile AIDA have left [The World R:2]." He stated.

"What? Where did they go? And how is this related to Haseo?" I asked in confusion.

"I can answer both of those questions with one answer: [Sword Art Online.] The AIDA have moved to [Sword Art Online], which is where Haseo is currently at." Yata said.

"Why did they leave?" Silabus asked. Now, almost all of Haseo's friends, including me, know about G.U., Avatars, AIDA, and all of those other shit. I noticed Silabus has been pretty weird lately. Not surprising, since 2 of his friends had been stuck in that so-called game. Poor Gaspard, I hope he's doing well.

"Because AIDA are curious about human emotions. Currently, almost 2000 people have died in [Sword Art Online]. In a world where despair and sadness reigns, it is the perfect place for a hostile AIDA." Yata said.

"Wait a minute…_hostile_ AIDA? I thought all of the hostile AIDA were wiped out by Ovan's [The Rebirth]?" Kuhn asked.

"Light devours the darkness, but there are places where the light cannot reach. My [Rebirth] wiped out most of the hostile AIDA, but there are some that have escaped somehow." Ovan answered.

"What? That's terrible! All those people trapped in there…..oh wait, Haseo can still use his Avatar, right? Then there's no problem!" Kuhn said with a sigh of relief.

"Actually….it's best if Haseo did not use his Avatar." Yata said.

"Eh, why is that?" I asked. If he were to use his Avatar, he would most certainly finish that 'game' in no time.

"Because….he would have a very hard time controlling it. You see, each of the [Morganna Factors], also called [The Cursed Wave], have a purpose. For example, my [Corbenik, The Rebirth], is for gathering data on the meaning of life. Kuhn, your [Magus, The Propagation] is for gathering data on human reactions towards procreation. Skeith is not called [The Terror of Death] for nothing. It is tasked with gathering data on human reactions towards death." Ovan answered.

"In other words, if Haseo were to use Skeith at this very instant, it would be powered by the death of 2000 players." Yata finished.

"So…..how…how would Haseo combat an AIDA without an Avatar?" Kuhn asked.

"I…don't know. Let's just hope he can control Skeith very well. Well, that's the end of our meeting for today. Dismissed." Yata ordered.

Taking off my M2D and controller, I looked around the room I was currently at. Haseo's, or rather Ryou Misaki's, hospital room. Beside Ryou's bed, where he is sleeping with the [NerveGear] still on, is Atoli, or rather Chigusa Kusaka, sitting down, looking at his sleeping face.

"Atoli….." I said. Even though we were in the real world, we still called each other out game names.

"Alkaid…how was the meeting?" she asked.

"It went…fine." I lied. "You shouldn't stay there too long. You should eat first." I said. Atoli haven't eaten anything in days.

"No…I want to stay beside him….." she answered. She's been like this since the very day SAO started, refusing to leave by his side. Okay, I would be lying if I said I didn't want to do the same thing as she did, but I held myself back.

"Look, Atoli…..he'll be fine. It's Haseo we're talking about here. With or without his Avatar, he would never lose." I said.

"I know that…..but why, Alkaid? Why, of all people, why did he have to be the one to get trapped in there?" Atoli asked.

I couldn't answer that question myself. I find myself asking it as well.

Why did it have to be him?

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_2__nd__ December, First Floor, Haseo/Skeith_

It has been one month since Sword Art Online's official release.

One month since this game became a death game.

One month since I vowed to kill Kayaba Akihiko.

In that one month, almost 2000 people have died.

In that one month, I have been grinding with Klein and his friends. We fought every day, sometimes without rest, killing monsters around [The Town of Beginnings]. Our average levels were level 10. I was level 12.

On that particular day, I decided to fight separate from the group and fight in the labyrinth.

On that day, I met her.

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_First Floor Labyrinth, Haseo/Skeith_

I watched the fight that was happening with interest.

A person wearing a hooded cloak, with a rapier in his or her hands was fighting a level 6 monster, [Ruin Kobold Trooper]. The monster swung it's hand axe, and the person dodged it, albeit barely. But after dodging 3 strikes, the monster lost its balance, and the player used a sword skill, [Linear], a basic sword skill for rapier users, in full force.

The player continued the pattern, dodging the 3-strike combo and countering with [Linear], until finally killing it, with full hp. However, it still did not seem like an easy battle. The player wavered, then leaned onto the wall, and slid down to sit, while breathing hard. Clearly the player was very tired.

I walked out of the shadow and towards the player. The player stiffened his or her shoulders, but didn't do anything other than that. The player must have noticed I'm a player. He or she showed 'just pass by and go somewhere else' feeling pretty strong, too bad I wasn't going to do that.

"That was a pretty good fight….but I do think it was a little bit of overkill." I told her.

The player tilted his or her head, showing an 'I don't understand' kind of gesture.

So it was like that.

When I first saw this player, I thought he or she was a beta tester due to her skill. But, being a former top player of [The World R:2], I noticed that her fighting style was way too reckless so that might not be the case. But it seems she might not even be someone who has played a game before.

"Overkill means you overdid it. There was no need for another [Sword Skill], as that monster only had a miniscule amount of hp left. A normal attack would have been fine." I told the player. A few seconds passed before I got an answer.

"…overkill, is there anything wrong with it?" a female voice said.

I wasn't surprised at all by the fact that this player was female. While female players are rare in this game, I have met plenty of women in [The World R:2]. Let's see, where to start…. Tabby, Shino, Atoli, Pi, Alkaid, Kaede, Saku, Natsume, and a whole lot more. By the way, I can marry all of them in .hack/G.U. Vol. 3: Redemption except Natsume. I'm more of a Casanova than Kuhn is. And yes, I do realize I'm breaking the 4th wall here.

"Well, you get no merits if you overkill, but it's bad for efficiency. It can be pretty taxing, so getting to the return path would be rather hard but to get back." I told her.

"….return path?" she asked.

"…you don't even know that? Gah, what a noob. Look, it'll take some time to get back to the nearest town from here. Exhaustion is bad in this world, especially for a solo player." I told her.

"…..Noob?" she asked.

…you have got to be kidding me.

"There's….no problem. I won't be returning." She continued.

"Not returning? How about potions, equipment, and sleep?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

"I don't need potions if I'm not taking damage, I have 5 of the same sword, and I sleep in a nearby safe area." She said.

"Sleep…in a safe area? Those are not the healthiest places to sleep, you know. How long have you been here?" I asked.

"Three or four days. If that's all, I am leaving, as the monsters will revive soon." She said. She stood up, and walked away behind me.

"If you fight like that, you will end up dying." I told her.

"Everyone will end up dying in the end. In just one month, 2000 players have died. Not even the first floor has been cleared. It is not possible to clear this game. The only difference is how early you die." She told me.

I was not surprised by that answer. Many players have become like this. They have lost their will to live. Their will to fight. But I haven't. I still have a reason to live, a reason to fight. I looked at her to answer her…..

…..but she was on the floor, unconscious.

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_Third person POV_

Asuna – Yuuki Asuna – opened her eyes in confusion.

She had accepted that she will die in a labyrinth full of monsters a long time ago. She knew she would die in this cruel game.

But why isn't she dead yet? She was no longer in a labyrinth, and was now in a forest. She looked to the right, to see someone sitting under a tree. Beside him was a rather large two-handed sword, and it was obvious to Asuna that this was the person she talked to earlier.

Noticing her, the man wearing completely black leather armor, and looked at her with his piercing red eyes.

It was something that confused her ever since she saw him. To her knowledge, eyes were not something you can customize in this game. His red eyes were very abnormal and pretty creepy too.

"Unnecessary…effort. You did not have to save me." She told the man.

"Unnecessary?" he said, with a hint anger. His red eyes seemed to stare into her very soul, scaring her slightly. "Do you REALLY think your life's worthless? Do you really think we can't clear this game?" he asked.

Fighting back her fear, she exclaimed "YES! Yes, I do think my life's worthless. I do think we can never clear this game! In the end, we'll just die being killed by monsters!"

"Hah! So that's it? You're just afraid of dying? Then why don't you just stay in the [Town of Beginnings] then?" he asked.

"Because there's no way to be sure that the rule that monsters can't enter cities would last forever! There's no meaning to just waiting for the game to be cleared…..the only thing to do is….to die." She said.

"…I see. So that's how you think. I can understand where you're coming from. 2000 people have died already, and we haven't even cleared the first floor yet. The chances of us clearing this game are slim. Living is meaningless." He said.

Asuna relaxed a bit. She thought this man finally understood her. But….

"However." He continued. "That is the thinking of _cowards_." He spat out angrily. "That is thinking of people who are afraid to go forward! People who have lost their will! People who have lost the reason to live! You!" he said, pointing at Asuna. "Don't you have any family and friends you want to see again?" he asked.

"Of course I do!" Asuna answered, thinking about her mother, father, friends and family.

"Then fight! Fight, so you can see them again! And if you think that your life's so worthless you don't even deserve to live, then…" he said, grabbing his sword and pointing it towards Asuna. "….I'll kill you so I can get stronger, then I'll get even stronger, and stronger, and stronger, and I'll defeat the first boss, I'll defeat the second boss, I'll defeat all the bosses! And then, I'll kill Kayaba Akihiko, and free everyone from this game!" he said, confidence and determination in his voice.

Asuna blinked a few times. In the one month she has been in this game, she has never heard of someone so confident in winning this game, not even back when morale was still high. For a moment, she believed in him, that he will defeat the bosses, that he would free everyone from this death game. But still…..

"Then kill me, kill me so you can get stronger!" she shouted.

A few seconds passed. The man sighed, and pulled away his sword. "Damn, and I thought that would work." He said, frustrated. "Look." He continued. "How about we make a deal? Today, the first meeting to defeat the first boss will be held. If we were to defeat the first boss, promise me you would scrap that pessimism of yours. If we don't…..then I'll admit you're right" He said.

"But…it's just the first out of 100 bosses." She said.

"True, but you know what they say, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. If we defeat he first boss, it will show that we _can_ clear this game." He said. "So what do you say, want to come with me?"

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxx

_Haseo/Skeith's POV, Tolbana_

The female player and I arrived at Tolbana, the place where the meeting would be held. The words [Inner Area] appeared, showing that I have entered a safe area.

"The meeting will be held in the town center, at 4pm in the afternoon." I told her. She did nodded slightly, and walked pass me.

"A strange girl." I heard a high pitched voice said. I turned around to see a friend of mine, [Argo the Rat]. She wore full body cloth and leather, and on both her cheeks were 3 whiskers drawn on with a make-up item.

"A strange girl indeed. What do you know about that player?" I asked. Argo was not a powerful fighter, but she is probably the one with the best knowledge of this world. Her power does not lie in strength, but in her information.

"I'll sell it cheap. 500 Col"

"Eh, I'll pass. I'm not the type of person to buy someone's personal information." I answered.

"Hehehe, you have a good heart." She answered.

"Maybe I do. So today again, eh?" I asked her.

Ago frowned, and looked for anyone that might try to overhear their conversation, and led me to an alleyway.

"Well, yeah. The offer has been raised to 29, 800 Col." She answered.

"29.8k Col? That's quite a lot. But as I have said before, I'm not interested in selling the sword." I told her.

"I already told the client that." She said.

I sighed. This mysterious client is pretty stubborn. I'm pretty sure you guys are wondering what we're talking about.

You see, someone is trying to buy my two-handed broadsword (is there even such thing as a one-handed broadsword?), [Great Blade +6 (2S4D)]. Now in case you were wondering, that meant my [Great Blade] was enhanced with +2 Sharpness and +4 Durability. My [Great Blade] was a weapon I got from a pretty hard quest, and compared to other weapons on the first floor it's pretty powerful. But it was still a [Beginner's Item] so paying 29.8k Col…..seemed utterly ridiculous.

"Well, I will tell the client you rejected the offer. See you later, Ske-bou." She said.

"I told you not to call me weird-ass nicknames!" I exclaimed, but she was already gone.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xxxxxx

_Third Person POV_

Asuna was sitting at the center of the town Tolbana, and silently ate the piece of black bread in her mouth. It was something that confused her. No matter how much you ate in this world, not a single grain would reach your real stomach. But if you don't eat, you would feel hunger that would not disappear until you have eaten something. She would rather have this food system not exist at all.

"Yo. We meet again. That reminds me, I still don't know your name." A familiar voice said. She turned to her right, to see the same person who invited her to this conference.

Usually, she would have just left the place. But she owns this man her life, so she felt that he at least should know her name. She opened her mouth to speak, but just as she was about to speak, the bell rang, heard across the town, signaling it was time for the conference to begin.

"….let's go. It's the conference you invited me to." Asuna said. She slowly got up. It's a shame she would never know his name, but she would probably die anyways, so it didn't matter. But, a small part in her wanted to know his name. The name of the man who, she believed, would free the remaining survivors of this world. It's just that she didn't think she would be one of the survivors.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx x

_Haseo's/Skeith's POV_

44 people.

That was the number of players that had gathered at Tolbana. This was far too low. The maximum amount of members for a party was 6. For a raid group, we need 8 times that. To defeat a floor boss with zero casualties, we would at least need 2 raid groups. With this, we can't even fill one.

"This many…." I heard someone say. It was from the rapier user. "They gathered here even though the chance of complete annihilation exists." She said.

"…not exactly. I think most of them just don't want to get left behind instead of wanting to clear this game." I said.

"Left behind from what?" she asked.

"From the front lines. Facing total annihilation is scary, but fighting an unknown boss is even scarier." I explained.

Her hood tilted slightly. Oh yeah, I forgot – she's a noob, so she probably doesn't get what I'm saying here.

"Is that like, not wanting to fall below tenth rank in you school year?" she asked.

I was speechless for a while. I did not expect that answer. "Umm…..I guess so." I answered.

I could hear some faint laughter coming from the hood. This was probably the first time I heard her laugh. Damn, I still don't know her name yet….

I heard a clapping sound, followed by a voice. "O ~ K! We're five minutes late, but let's start! Everyone, move a bit to the front!"

The voice came from a tall, blue-haired man in armor, with a one-handed longsword sheathed on his back. " Thank you everyone for coming here! I am Diabel, and I would like to think my job is [Knight]." He said.

There were many clapping and cheering, including shouts of: "You idiot! Here's no job system here!". Diabel just smiled sheepishly.

"Well, the reason I gathered you all here, I don't think I need to say it…today, my party found stairs leading to the final floor of the labyrinth. This means, tomorrow, or at the very latest the day after tomorrow, we will reach it…..the first boss's room! One month…it took us one month to get here. Even so, we need to set an example. We need to show everyone we can beat this game! Isn't that right, everyone?"

Cheers erupted from the players. I agreed with his point of view. We have to show everyone that this game can be cleared. It doesn't matter how many years it'll take. Just defeating this one boss will definitely raise everyone's morale.

"Wait a minute, Knight-san." A low voice said. The cheering stopped, and the crowd was split into 2. At the center of the emptied space, stood a man with pointed, cactus-like hair. "Before that, there is one thing that must be cleared up." He said.

"Opinions are very welcome. Why don't you tell us your name first?" Diabel asked.

"I am Kibaou." The man answered. He scanned the faces of each and everyone in the crowd. He stopped for an instant when looking at me, then continued scanning the crowd. "In there, about 5 to 10 people need to apologize." He said.

"Apologize? To whom?" Diabel asked.

"Hah, isn't it obvious? To the 2000 dead players, of course! Those guys had a monopoly on everything! And because of that, 2000 players died!" Kibaou spat out in hatred.

The crowd became silent. Everyone understood what he meant. I looked at him in anger. How dare he….

"Kibaou-san…..by 'those guys'…..you mean the beta testers, right?" Diabel asked.

"Obviously. Those bastards, they monopolized everything! They left 9000 players who didn't know anything! They monopolized everything, not caring about those left behind…..there should some of them here, hiding their – "

"Shut your mouth." I spat out. Everyone turned to me. "You bastard….do you think none of them died?" I said. I raised 3 fingers for the crowd to see. "Three hundred. That is the number of beta testers that have died during this one month." I said, glaring at Kibaou.

There were many gasps heard among the crowd. They obviously did not think the beta testers died.

Kibaous was speechless for a while. "W-well, then you're a beta tester too, aren't you?" he asked.

I smirked at him. "Yes. Yes I am." I said.

Everyone gaped at me, not believing someone was so bold as to admit they're a beta tester.

Kibaou looked surprised, but a few seconds later his face turned to that of anger. "I see. Makes things easier. Now kneel down and apologize to all of us!" he exclaimed.

"Hah. Make me." I answered.

"Oh, I _will_." Kibaou said, unsheathing his blade. I snickered, irritating him. "What's so funny?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing…." I answered. I took out my broadsword, and let the blade rest on my shoulder. I smirked as I looked at him.

"I was just thinking how you would be like after I give you the most epic ass-kicking of your MMO career." I answered.

**Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx xx**

**End of Chapter 2**

**Gah, I wanted to squeeze in more scenes, but I'm too much of a lazy bastard.**

**To answer some of your questions, yes, Haseo will be using his Avatar, just not know since it's game-breakingly powerful. Yes, the second unique skill will be weapon swap.**

**So, what do you think of this chapter? What do you hope to see in the future? **

**And remember, tell me your preferred pairing for this fanfic! It doesn't even matter if it's guest reviews.**

**See you later!**


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